Improve Presentation Skills By Providing Your Listeners With A Solution To Their Problem

Generally speaking, professionals in your workworld are busy people. More to the point, they have limited time and interest in other people’s problems. However, they do possess an unwavering interest in their own lives and predicaments. That said, if you want to engage an audience you need to identify the problem faced by your listeners and then go on to SOLVE it!! Moreover, you want to impress upon them that they can solve their own predicament by listening to your talk and following the steps you provide.

Solution focussed speaking is an important tool in your communication tool box. By highlighting the pain or dilemma your listeners face you can then let them know that your presentation will provide key tools to assist them in resolving their own issue. One way to share your solution and how it applies to your listener is to outline your experience and how it applies to the audience by using the W4H1 Approach. This W4H1 approach has long been used by writers to convey information in a concise and organized manner. It involves utilizing a five-pronged explanatory approach by asking and answering five questions; these questions start with either a “W” or an “H”. For example, look at questions that start with: What? Where? When? Why? & How? This combination of five helps you to provide a concise overview of your own experience.

For example, let’s say that you were talking to a group of professionals who were concerned about upcoming layoffs. After first tapping into the pain and anguish this is undoubtedly producing in a group of staff, you could discuss how you successfully prepared for and transitioned through a lay off experience by starting your own consulting business. Let’s look at the W4H1 approach and how it would apply to this example of starting a consulting business. Notice that the questions are also written in an audience focussed manner by dealing with what THEY can do, rather than a pure history of what YOU yourself did.

- What Can You Do?

- Where Can You Find Customers?

- When Should You Start Your Business?

- Why Promote Your Services?

- How Can You Promote Your Services?

By answering each of these questions in a clear and concise manner you are directing your audience to solution oriented steps that they can take to resolve their issue. Your audience will thank you for not only connecting with their dilemma, but for explicitly helping them to understand a solution and take action! For more information on how to communicate with your audience visit our website at http://www.boldnewdirections.com to find out about presentation skills training, communication seminars, free reports and more!

Four Tips for Technical Experts Who Need to Present to Senior Management Audiences

I recently conducted a survey on how technical experts – like finance executives – can better present themselves to senior management. Here are some of the insights from the survey, the common problems faced by presenters and some solutions on making sure your next presentation to senior executives is received in a positive light.

Common problems faced by technical presenters

Technical presenters have a strong tendency to focus on the ‘how’ of the content rather than the outcome. Technical presenters tend to either over explain the technical aspects of their presentation, even though they are facing a savvy audience who have a good grasp of the technicalities. Or they get too bogged down in the numbers and miss the overarching purpose of the presentation, meeting or conference call which is often to help the senior executive to make a decision.

I would like to share four tips that you can apply to improve your presentation skills when communicating up to a senior executive audience.

Tip 1: Understand your audience’s motivations so you know why are in this meeting

In The One Minute Presenter, a key step is Treasure your Audience. The main purpose of understanding your audience in detail is to go deeper into their motivations and hot buttons. This understanding helps the technical presenter prepare for meetings. Ask key questions like, “Why is the senior executive joining this meeting?” Is it to gain a brief overview on a topic, an update, a summary or to receive your input on a critical time-sensitive business issue which needs a decision?

Tip 2: Technical literacy quick check

When thinking about your content and how deep to go into the technicalities, think about the literacy of the senior executive on this issue. Are they familiar in depth with the issue? If they are, don’t start from the beginning when introducing the topic. Is the senior manager highly literate but not as familiar with the local differences on which you are an expert? Then skip explaining broad concepts and get into the specifics. Don’t worry if you skip too far ahead, the senior executive will ask you a question.

Tip 3: Think through your presentation’s timing

When you are preparing your content or your slide presentation, ask yourself how much time you have to deliver. If you have twenty minutes and twenty slides of packed data charts, are you allowing yourself enough time for the audience to digest them? Is there a better way to extract your message from each slide and highlight it in a clear slide? Consider using handouts when you need to pass on a record of the data to your audience. Build in some time for questions into your presentation time in case you are asked a series of questions or time is cut from your delivery time. If you have twenty minutes to present, then arrange fifteen minutes of content.

Tip 4: Produce your message for every presentation

Even if you are delivering a frequent update for a weekly management meeting, think about what your message in a nutshell is for every meeting. Press yourself to find a link between your message and the motivations and interests of the senior executives. The more relevant you can make your message to their driving issues, the more likely you are get their attention and receive positive comments. You have to speak to the issues that are important to senior management. They often look at the same topics in a different light. They are more likely to take a broader look or apply a wider scope to the topic. Remember that they are likely to have shifting priorities based on the current state of the business. Are you able to link your topics to the major issues like total revenue, profit margins, share price, market share, and others. Can you fit your topic into those issues?

Conclusion

While you are a technical expert and are valued for the insights you bring, when facing senior management you may need to adjust your content and dig out a message that is in line with the senior executives current reality.

Avoid Mistakes When Using Audiovisuals in Training: It’s All in the Presentation

The misuse of audiovisuals can seriously detract from an effective training. Avoid these four mistakes:

Mistake #1: Not removing or turning off AV

We consciously use audiovisuals to focus the participants on a key point or picture. However, we forget that, unless we remove the flip chart or turn off the PowerPoint, that is where their focus will remain. When the audiovisual has served its purpose, remove it or turn it off. Flip the page on the flip chart easel or use a computer key or remote to blacken the screen until you need the next slide.

Mistake #2: Staying anchored to the projected AV

In this day and age, there is absolutely no reason why a trainer needs to continually stand close to the projector or computer. There are lots of inexpensive remote controls on the market. A trainer who is tied to the audiovisual equipment is just as static and uninteresting to watch as a trainer who is tied to a lectern. Besides, it is pretty difficult to physically engage with participants when you can’t move.

Mistake #3: Placing all content on the AV

If all of the training content is really on the PowerPoint, then there are two basic conclusions to make. First, either there are a lot of slides or the font size is too small to read and the slide is too filled with text. Second, there is no real need for a trip to a training room. Save travel costs, cancel the training and simply mail the PowerPoint out to the participants.

Mistake #4: Keeping the room lights dim

Yes, we want the participants to be able to see any projected audiovisuals. Yes, dimming the lights can make those projections easier to see on the screen. But there are three problems if you keep the room dim. First, if the participants are only expected to sit and watch the screen without taking notes, they will easily fall into a relaxed mode and possibly nod off. Second, the energy in the room will dissipate quickly. Third, if the participants are expected to take notes, they won’t be able to see. So find a happy medium. If possible, just dim the row of lights directly in front of the screen. If that is not possible, make sure that the projected audiovisual can be clearly seen in full light.

Avoiding these four mistakes and improving how the audiovisuals are presented should make the participant’s learning experience much more effective and enjoyable.